Hunter Martin: Inquest jury finds six-month-old baby boy given wrong dose died of natural causes
A jury at an inquest into the death of a six-month-old baby, who was given the wrong dose by medical staff at Chesterfield Royal Hospital, found that he died of natural causes.
Hunter Martin was admitted to hospital with suspected chicken pox on 4 March 2023.
Despite the concerns of his parents Jade Smith and Alex Martin, he was given ibuprofen and sent home.
Overnight, Hunter's condition worsened, and he was rushed back to hospital and to a high-dependency ward.
He was then diagnosed with sepsis and invasive group A streptococcal disease. Hunter was then administered the antibiotic drug Clindamycin.
The jury heard how he was given ten times the dose of medication he was supposed to be given - 940 milligrams instead of 94 milligrams.
Hunter was transferred to Sheffield Children's Hospital, but he died later that day after suffering three cardiac arrests.
At the hearing, a statement from Hunter's mother Jade Smith was read out, in which she described her son as "a bonnie blue-eyed angel".
She also said when she took Hunter to the hospital the second time, she told staff his body was swollen and his eyes were puffy.
But they were told that was probably just excess fluid. They were also told that Hunter was gasping and retching because he had an empty stomach.
Ms Smith's statement ended with her saying: "We miss Hunter terribly and there is a deathly silence that lingers over our lives now."
The trust which runs Chesterfield Royal Hospital had previously admitted there were missed opportunities to diagnose Hunter and had Hunter been given the correct antibiotics earlier, on the balance of probabilities he might have survived.
They also admitted there had been an error in the dosage of antibiotics given to Hunter but they are not clear whether this contributed to the little boy's deterioration.
Want a quick and expert briefing on the biggest news stories? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out What You Need To Know...